Nothing could stop Dad. After he was put on disability for a bad back, he bought a small farm in the country, just enough to grow food for the family. He planted vegetables, fruit trees and even kept bees for honey.

    And every week he cleaned Old Man McColgin's chicken house in exchange for manure(肥料). The smell really burned the inside of your nose. When we complained about the terrible smell, Dad said the stronger the manure, the healthier the crops, and he was right. For example, just one of his cantaloupes filled the entire house with its sweet smell, and the taste was even sweeter.

    As the vegetables started coming in, Dad threw himself into cooking. One day, armed with a basket of vegetables, he announced he was going to make stew(炖菜).Dad pulled out a pressure cooker and filled it up with cabbages, eggplants, potatoes, corns, onions and carrots. For about half an hour, the pressure built and the vegetables cooked. Finally, Dad turned off the stove, the pot began to cool and the pressure relief valve sprayed out a cloud of steam. If we thought Dad's pile of chicken manure was bad, this was 10 times worse. When Dad took off the lid, the smell nearly knocked us out.

    Dad carried the pot out and we opened doors and windows to air out the house. Just how bad was it? The neighbors came out of their houses to see if we had a gas leak!

    Determined, Dad filled our plates with steaming stew and passed them around. It didn't look that bad, and after the first wave had shut down my ability to smell, it didn't offend the nose so much, either. I took a taste. It would never win a prize in a cooking competition, but it was surprisingly edible, and we drank up every last drop of soup!

    A few years ago, my wife, Sue had some serious health problems. She had suffered surgery after surgery and had also put on weight. Diets had not helped her and she suffered constantly from undiagnosed pain. One day the whole family sat down and drew up a “wish list”. To our surprise, one of Sue's items was to run in a marathon. Given her history and physical limitations, I thought her goal was completely unrealistic, but Sue became committed to it.

    She began by running very slowly and every day she ran just a little farther than she did the day before. Soon she could run three miles. Then five. Sue kept practicing and longed to run in the St. George Marathon in southern Utah.

    On the big day, I parked our van near the finish line, waiting for Sue. The rain was steady and the wind was cold. The marathon had started over five hours ago. The fast and strong competitors had finished already. Several cold and injured runners had been transported past me, and I began to panic. The image of Sue, alone and cold, off the road somewhere, made me sick with worry.

    Another hour passed and I spotted a small group running up. As they approached, I could see Sue, in the company of three others, and a woman in her twenties was near Sue. It was obvious that they had become friends during the race. I could see her begin to struggle. But when the finish line came into sight, she confidently even happily picked up her pace the last hundred yards to the finish line. Few people were left to congratulate my wife. They openly praised and embraced her, “She made us believe we could do it,” her new friend stated.

    From then on, she was carrying herself differently. Her head was more upright. Her shoulders were squared. Her walk had a new confidence. Her voice held a new, quiet dignity. It was not as if she had become someone new; it was more as if she had discovered a real self she had not known before. It was perseverance that made her realize she was an undiscovered masterpiece with a million things left to learn about herself. She truly liked her newly discovered self. So did I.

    Before a new type of airplane goes into service, every part of it is tested again and again. But there are two tests that are more important than all the others.

    The first is called the "tank test". A modem airplane must fly very high in the sky. Air must be pumped into the plane so that the passengers can breathe. The metal structure (结构)of the plane has to be very strong for this reason. When the plane is filled with air, the air presses against the skin of the plane inside. The pressure (压力) on a small window is like a huge foot that is trying to get out. If a small part of the plane were to fail, the plane would explode in the sky. To test the structure of the plane, the plane is lowered into a huge tank or container of water. Then it is filled with air. Vne pressure inside the plane is greater than it ever will be when it is high up in the air. Finally, there is an explosion. This does not cause so much damage inside the water tank as it would anywhere else. Engineers can discover which part of the plane has broken. Then that part is made stronger.

    The most dangerous test happens when the new plane is going through test flights in the air. The test pilot must find out exactly what happens when the engines (发动机) are all shut off at once. The plane begins to fall like a stone. It is the pilot's job to find out how he can get control of the plane again. These two tests are examples of how planes are made safe before they ever carry passengers.

    Living and dealing with kids can be a tough job these days, but living and dealing with parents can be even tougher.

    If I have learned anything in my 16 years, it is that communication is very important, both when you disagree and when you get along. With any relationship, you need to let other person know how you are feeling. If you are not able to communicate, you drift apart()疏远). When you are mad at your parents, or anyone else, not talking to them doesn't solve anything.

    Communication begins with the concerns of another. It means that you can't just come home from school, go up to your room and ignore everyone. Even if you just say "Hi", and see how their day was for five minutes, it is better than nothing.

    If you looked up the word "communication" in a dictionary, it would say "the exchange of ideas, the conveyance（表达）of information, correspondence （通信）, means of communication: a letter or a message". To maintain (保持) a good relationship, you must keep communication strong. Let people know how you feel, even if it's just by writing a note.

    When dealing with parents, you always have to make them feel good about how they are doing as a parent. If you are trying to make them see something as you see it, tell them that you'll listen to what they have to say, but ask them politely to listen to you. Yelling or walking away only makes the situation worse.

    This is an example: one night, Sophie went to a street party with her friends. She knew she had to be home by midnight after the fireworks, but she didn't feel she could just ask to go home. That would be rude. After all, they had been nice enough to take her along with them. Needless to say, she was late getting home. Her parents were mad at first, but when Sophie explained why she was late, they weren't as mad and let the incident go. Communication is the key factor here. If Sophie's parents had not been willing to listen, Sophie would have been in a lot of trouble.

    Communication isn't a one-way deal: it goes both ways. Just remember: if you get into a situation like Sophie's, telling the other person how you feel and listening is the key factor to communication.

Bayfield Shopping Coupons(赠券)

    ⒈Six Hours Free Parking

    If you spend $100 or more in our stores you will receive six hours of free parking. When you have spent $100 or more, just take this coupon and your receipts to the customer service desk on level 4. They will stamp your parking ticket to allow 6 hours of free parking.

    Offer here until November 14.

    ⒉Win a $1000 CD Collection

    Win your choice of $1000 worth of CDs from JB Music Store. Just buy any two CDs and your name will go into the competition. Select your own prize from our wide variety of rock, pop, jazz, and classical music. Competition ends November 14. Prize drawn on November 21.

    Check store for more information.

    ⒊Buy One, Get One Free

    Buy one shirt or tie at Daniel's .Menswear, and get another shirt or tie of the same value free. Choose from any of our dress shirts and we will give you another one at no cost.

    Hurry! Offer ends November 14. Offer limited to one per customer.

    ⒋10% off

    Present this coupon at The Book Store to get a 10% discount on any books you buy. We have lots of books to choose from. Including children's books, novels, travel guides, and science works. You're sure to find something that you will enjoy. Shop now for Christmas. We have plenty of toys as gifts for you and avoid the rush!

    Offer here until November 14.

    ⒌Half-price Movie Tickets

    Buy any full-price movie ticket on Tuesdays or Wednesdays, and you can buy a second ticket for a friend for only half-price. The latest movies are here, showing in one of our five theaters at Bayfield Shopping Centre.

    Offer here through December 1. Limit one per customer.

    ⒍Free Soft Drink

    Buy any meal for at least $6 at Mike's Cafe, and receive a free soft drink. We serve the best fast food in the Shopping Centre. Come in and try our delicious meals and our excellent service. You won't be disappointed!

    Free soft drink offer ends November 14.

    In his 402nd anniversary year, Shakespeare is still rightly celebrated as a great wordsmith （语言大师）and playwright （剧作家）.But he was not the only great master of dramatic writing to die in 1616, and he is certainly not the only writer to have left a lasting influence on theater.

    While less known worldwide, Tang Xianzu is considered China's greatest playwright and is highly spoken of in that country of ancient literary and dramatic traditions.

    Tang was born in 1550 in Linchuan, Jiangxi province, and pursued a low-key career as an official until, in 1598 and aged 49, he retired to focus on writing. Unlike Shakespeare's large body of plays, poems and sonnets （十四行诗），Tang wrote only four major plays: The Purple Hairpin （《紫钗记》），Peony Pavilion （《牡丹亭》），A Dream under the Southern Bough （《南柯记》），and Dream of Handan（《邯郸记》）. The Peony Pavilion is considered Tang's masterpiece. The latter three are constructed around a dream narrative, a device through which Tang unlocked the emotional dimension of human desires and ambitions and explored human nature beyond the social and political restrictions of that time.

    Tang lived toward the end of the Ming Dynasty（1368—1644）and the popularity of his works had a good reason. Similar to Shakespeare, his success rode the wave of a renaissance （复兴）in theater as an artistic practice. As in Shakespeare's England, Tang's works became hugely popular in China too. During Tang's China, the way, in which playlets were enjoyed and performed, changed. Kunqu opera, a form of musical drama, spread from southern China to the whole nation and became a symbol of Chinese culture. Combining northern tune and southern music, kunqu opera was known for its poetic language, music, dance movements and gestures. Tang's works benefited greatly from the popularity of kunqu opera, and his playlets are considered classics of kunqu opera.

    While Tang and Shakespeare lived in a world away from each other, there are many things they share in common, such as the humanity of their drama, their iconic and heroic figures, their love for poetic language, a lasting popularity and the anniversary during which we still celebrate them.